COUNTING DOWN

I’m in the countdown mode. Three and a half days to go. My previous class wouldn’t shut up so I just ignored them and didn’t teach. Near the end of the class I wrote 4 words on the board in Korean. The first three were things I told them they were. The words were rude, ignorant, and immature. Then I told them that this was our last class together and I was glad because I quit. I had quit on the board in Korean. They’re 14 and they act like they’re seven. A few are fine, but it was no fun.

I signed the new contract last night. Kyle (new boss) says he found me a place to live that is in a new building. It’s not a high rise but a smaller apartment building of just 5 floors. It’s a 2 bedroom apartment so I’m quite happy. The amount I chip in for rent is about $120 a month so that’s fine. So Sunday is moving day. Yoon-Soo will come and help me in the morning get my stuff there. Saeyoon says she’ll come in the afternoon to help me get settled and she said she’d come on Saturday to help me get organized. So I’m set except for setting up the cancellation of the phone, gas, and Internet. I’ve asked Kyle to schedule the Internet install for as soon as possible. It’s hard to remember how we lived before it.

Min Kyung says to me yesterday that she’s not sure how she feels about my leaving. She’s a little scared of what might come after me. (I didn’t tell her that they couldn’t come any worse than me). I did try and make an important point to her, but I don’t know if it stuck. I said that Westerners come to Korea and have to learn Korean ways to get along. I said that Koreans who invite Westerners here and have to work with them should try and learn some Western ways so they can understand them better. I hope she got it.

I honestly don’t know if I’m doing the right thing. Only time will tell. I hope the town I am moving to is nice. It’s very near Seoul and I’m a five minute walk from the subway station. I’m sure in many ways it will be a third totally different Korean experience. I’m certainly not letting any grass grow under my feet. I do know (I think) that this will be either my last job in Korea, or my only job for the next year or so. Three strikes and you’re out. If it doesn’t work I’ll take the hint. Of course I need the work life and the personal life to work out. If the personal life doesn’t work out I can still keep the job and maybe make some money and have a new personal life. If the job doesn’t work out I can suffer through it because the money is good and the personal life makes it worth it. But I honestly can’t see the future.

I’m really starting to enjoy the Dunkin Donuts coffee. I hope there is one near my new place. Coffee is quite expensive here, but it’s a vice I enjoy. It’s about $2.25 for a large coffee at Dunkin Donuts and $3.50 at Starbucks. The drawback to Dunkin Donuts is that I always buy a donut or four, while at Starbucks I usually don’t buy any cake.

I’ve said this before I’m sure, and I know I’ll say it again. If I could see family every month instead of 6+ months and still do this living overseas thing, everything would be so much better for me. It would help combat the loneliness and it would just be wonderful to see everyone. In some ways this is such an unfair choice that I’ve made and I mean unfair to me. I want both and of course I can’t have both. It would be a hoot if Elana and Leah were here because then I could bring them to school for show and tell.